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The Roger Angell Baseball Collection: The Summer Game, Five Seasons, and Season Ticket
A captivating collection of three nonfiction baseball books by acclaimed writer Roger The Summer Game , Five Seasons , and Season Ticket
The Summer Game , originally published in 1972, is a stunning collection of Angell’s essays on the major leagues, covering a span of ten seasons. Angell brilliantly captures the nation’s most beloved sport through the 1960s, spanning both the winning teams and the “horrendous losers,” and including famed players Sandy Koufax, Bob Gibson, Brooks Robinson, Frank Robinson, Willie Mays, and more. With the panache of a seasoned sportswriter and the energy of an avid baseball fan, Angell’s sports journalism is an insightful and compelling look at the great American pastime.
In Five Seasons , New Yorker sportswriter Roger Angell calls 1972 to 1976 “the most important half-decade in the history of the game.” The early to mid-1970s brought unprecedented changes to America’s ancient astounding performances by Nolan Ryan and Hank Aaron; the intensity of the “best-ever” 1975 World Series between the Cincinnati Reds and the Boston Red Sox; the changes growing from bitter and extended labor strikes and lockouts; and the vast new influence of network television on the game. Angell, always a fan as well as a writer, casts a knowing but noncynical eye on these events, offering a fresh perspective to baseball’s continuing appeal during this brilliant and transformative era.
And in Season Ticket , Roger Angell once again journeys through five seasons of America’s national pastime—chronicling the larger-than-life narratives and on-field intricacies of baseball from 1982 to 1987. Angell’s collected New Yorker essays, written in his unique voice as a fan and baseball aficionado, cover the development of the game both on the diamond and off. While diving into subjects such as Sparky Anderson’s ’84 Detroit Tigers, the legendary 1986 World Series and the Curse of the Bambino, and the increasingly pervasive issue of player drug use, Angell reveals the craft and technique of the game, and the unforgettable stories of those who played it.
The Summer Game , originally published in 1972, is a stunning collection of Angell’s essays on the major leagues, covering a span of ten seasons. Angell brilliantly captures the nation’s most beloved sport through the 1960s, spanning both the winning teams and the “horrendous losers,” and including famed players Sandy Koufax, Bob Gibson, Brooks Robinson, Frank Robinson, Willie Mays, and more. With the panache of a seasoned sportswriter and the energy of an avid baseball fan, Angell’s sports journalism is an insightful and compelling look at the great American pastime.
In Five Seasons , New Yorker sportswriter Roger Angell calls 1972 to 1976 “the most important half-decade in the history of the game.” The early to mid-1970s brought unprecedented changes to America’s ancient astounding performances by Nolan Ryan and Hank Aaron; the intensity of the “best-ever” 1975 World Series between the Cincinnati Reds and the Boston Red Sox; the changes growing from bitter and extended labor strikes and lockouts; and the vast new influence of network television on the game. Angell, always a fan as well as a writer, casts a knowing but noncynical eye on these events, offering a fresh perspective to baseball’s continuing appeal during this brilliant and transformative era.
And in Season Ticket , Roger Angell once again journeys through five seasons of America’s national pastime—chronicling the larger-than-life narratives and on-field intricacies of baseball from 1982 to 1987. Angell’s collected New Yorker essays, written in his unique voice as a fan and baseball aficionado, cover the development of the game both on the diamond and off. While diving into subjects such as Sparky Anderson’s ’84 Detroit Tigers, the legendary 1986 World Series and the Curse of the Bambino, and the increasingly pervasive issue of player drug use, Angell reveals the craft and technique of the game, and the unforgettable stories of those who played it.
1228 pages, Kindle Edition
First published November 18, 2013
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About the author
Roger Angell
53 books114 followersRoger Angell (b. 1920) is a celebrated New Yorker writer and editor. First published in the magazine in 1944, he became a fiction editor and regular contributor in 1956; and remains as a senior editor and staff writer. In addition to seven classic books on baseball, which include The Summer Game (1972), Five Seasons (1977), and Season Ticket (1988), he has written works of fiction, humor, and a memoir, Let Me Finish (2006).
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
July 4, 2017
Roger Angell, like his step-father E.B.White, is a superb prose stylist. In my opinion, the best baseball writer of the past half century.
The Baseball Collection is three of his books covering a span of about 25 years -- 1962 to 1987. I remember reading a number of the later pieces in the New Yorker. It was a pleasure to go back to the earlier pieces, though, and he covers baseball in the 1960s and 1970s with a fine gloss, a keen eye, and a prose style that brings out the inner workings and the magic of the game.
If I were to recommend one writer on the modern era of baseball, with a fan's sense of appreciation, it would be Angell. What is also nice is the pieces contained in the book can be read independently of each other, so if you choose a chapter, you can do what I like to do -- bounce around with the pieces to your enjoyment.
The Baseball Collection is three of his books covering a span of about 25 years -- 1962 to 1987. I remember reading a number of the later pieces in the New Yorker. It was a pleasure to go back to the earlier pieces, though, and he covers baseball in the 1960s and 1970s with a fine gloss, a keen eye, and a prose style that brings out the inner workings and the magic of the game.
If I were to recommend one writer on the modern era of baseball, with a fan's sense of appreciation, it would be Angell. What is also nice is the pieces contained in the book can be read independently of each other, so if you choose a chapter, you can do what I like to do -- bounce around with the pieces to your enjoyment.
January 3, 2018
I enjoyed it as that is the time that I really started following MLB. I picked my favorite team the Orioles. His stats from the decades he covers in this book(s) were interesting to me. The names of the players he mentions really brought back a good time for me. His ending chapter about the Hall of Fame was really informative. I have been fortunate enough to have visited the HOF and the Doubleday field. A real Lifelister for any true baseball fan. A very good read!!
May 14, 2018
A true love of baseball
Angell's writing gives the reader a good feel of what it was like to live through and experience baseball seasons of the 60s, 70s, and 80s as they happened. Much of the book reads as leisurely as the spring training afternoons Angell loves.
Angell's writing gives the reader a good feel of what it was like to live through and experience baseball seasons of the 60s, 70s, and 80s as they happened. Much of the book reads as leisurely as the spring training afternoons Angell loves.
April 19, 2020
Pure gold, start to finish.
April 22, 2024
In my view, Roger Angell was the most prolific, literate and passionate baseball writer of them all. All of the lyricism and humanity that we associate with the dreamy prose about our National Pastime is there, beautifully written and, at times, wonderfully intimate.
This collection tells stories across decades of baseball history, and the way Angell delivers them leaves no doubt about his love of the game. Stories that can be read and re-read over and over, of characters great and small. Stories that remind us of how timeless the game is, and how beautiful it is. If you love baseball, you can't help but love this book.
This collection tells stories across decades of baseball history, and the way Angell delivers them leaves no doubt about his love of the game. Stories that can be read and re-read over and over, of characters great and small. Stories that remind us of how timeless the game is, and how beautiful it is. If you love baseball, you can't help but love this book.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews